Chapitre 25: The Hesitation
Solskin
I froze, unable to act. I could only stare in horror as Persephone lay dying on the dusty ground. Her death was on my hands. I let loose a cry of fury and pain. I focused on my blade. I could feel it begin to vibrate in my hand. I raised my sword, ready to swing at the monster. I wanted to save her.
But I already knew that I was already too late.
Suddenly, I felt a scorching heat followed by a blinding light. I quickly raised my hands to cover my eyes, dropping my sword. It didn't too much. My eyes were in indescribable pain, and it wasn't just my eyes. Every second, I felt like my skin was peeling away, my flesh melting off my bones. Even behind my tightly shut eyelids, all I could see was white. A scorching, blinding, brilliant, painful white. My eyes burned, even as I turned away. It was no use. No matter where I stumbled, I felt as though every part in my body was slowly vaporizing into nothingness. I collapsed to the ground in agony, tears streaming uncontrollably down my face.
After a while, the heat faded away. Only then did I open my eyes. A nova of white light was all I saw. I blinked a few times, trying to clear my vision. I laid there for a long while, waiting for my aching body to ease. I looked around at the desolate landscape. All I could see around myself were purple flames. They licked silently towards the sky. I could see smoke rise from burned husks of the monsters. All of them were dead. I relaxed, letting my head fall back to the ground. I could hear a quiet sob close by.
It was Persephone. I glanced at her. Her skin was red, it looked sunburnt. Her wounds had healed from her magic. But they only sped up the body's natural processes, still leaving nasty scars. She was sitting on the ground next to me, her head buried in her lap. I tried to say something but all I could manage was a soft croak. She turned towards me, her eyes red-rimmed and watery. My heart sunk. It was my fault. Guilt pierced through me as we stared at each other.
Persephone
We sat there for a while after battle had ended. All of the monsters were dead. Thanatos incinerated them, but at a cost. I knew how much power he used to protect us. He revealed his true godly form to use his own lifeforce for power. He fought so many by himself, trying to protect us. He used so much magical power. I saw his normal form after, if only for a few seconds. From what I glimpsed, his appearance was drastically changed. His normally thick black hair had thinned considerably. What was left of it was a grayish color that was approaching white. His eyes were darker than before, and held with them a solemness that was not there before. His cheeks were hollow. And after locking eyes with me, he vanished. He sacrificed so much to help me. To help us.
I felt ashamed. As his servant, I forced my god to exert himself to his fullest extent. After healing my own wounds, sat next to Solskin, watching over him. His lips were locked in a grim line.
As if my body suddenly caught up to what had happened, I began to cry uncontrollably. Burning tears streaked down my face. I knew why Solskin had so much trouble dealing with it. The fear that I felt as the monster's claws reached towards me lingered on me, causing me to shiver as I recalled it.
The moment replayed in my mind. Over and over again.
Solskin woke next to me. Seeing his face, even more tears began to well up in my eyes. I quickly wiped them away with my sleeve and stood up, patting the dust off my tattered robes. With a forced smile, I turned towards him, "Let's go home."
Solskin nodded weakly. He tried to pull himself to a standing position, shaking from the effort. I bent over, helping him up. He was unsteady, but he could walk with support. Together, we struggled back to the heart of the underworld. To Orpheus's Pass.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone